6 injured after U.S. military helicopter crashes off Okinawa

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TOKYO — Six people were injured when a U.S. Army helicopter came in for a hard landing Wednesday on the deck of a Navy ship off the coast of Japan, according to the U.S. military.

The injured were taken to a Navy hospital, U.S. Forces Japan said.

The ship, the USNS Red Cloud, which has a helicopter landing pad on board, was more than 30 kilometers (about 20 miles) east of Okinawa when the H-60 helicopter came down. The incident’s cause is under investigation, U.S. Forces Japan said.

Earlier, the Japanese coast guard had reported the number of injured at seven.

It said it had received a rescue request from Camp Foster, a U.S. Marine Corps facility on Okinawa, and had carried out a rescue of all 17 of the helicopter’s crew members.